A lip reader has disclosed what Eberechi Eze told Riccardo Calafiori and Noni Madueke during Arsenal's 4-1 triumph over Tottenham Hotspur. It had been suggested that the 27-year-old midfielder, who propelled the Gunners to success in the North London Derby on Sunday evening, had some forthright remarks about Igor Tudor's team.
A portion of the Arsenal support on social media believed that Eze had branded Spurs as 'trash', moments after settling onto the bench. The England international was substituted by Martin Odegaard with roughly a quarter of an hour remaining.
An expert has examined the interaction, which was captured on camera by Sky Sports. An official transcript from lip reading specialist Nicola Hickling at LipReader told Football London: "[Eze] appears to say, 'It's f****d,' whilst rotating his finger in an upward circular motion.
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"He then says, 'It's not working,' pulling his shirt up over his head briefly before wiping his face and lowering it again. A voice off-screen (partially not visible) seems to respond.
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"He reacts with: 'I remember... the boss said it's cool, Eze, Er not today.' He raises his hand and says, 'Why should I,' flicking his hand outward in a dismissive or disagreeing gesture.
"The other speaker remains mostly off-camera, so their words are not visible. Whilst biting the edge of his shirt, appearing to process what's being said, he replies, 'Right now, yeah.' Looking away, he adds: 'He trashed 'em... it's trash, it's all trash.'".
The voice heard off-screen during the exchange belonged to Peter Drury, who provided commentary on the match for Sky Sports. Eze broke the deadlock on the half-hour mark, hammering the ball beyond Guglielmo Vicario from close quarters.
Spurs drew level barely a minute afterwards, with Randal Kolo Mauni capitalising on a Declan Rice error. Viktor Gyokeres restored the Gunners' advantage before the ex-Crystal Palace star grabbed his second of the day.
Deep into added time, Arsenal delivered the decisive fourth goal, wrapping up a vital victory in the championship race. The north Londoners successfully re-established their five-point advantage at the summit, shifting the focus back onto Manchester City, who possess a match in hand.
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Following the final whistle, Eze adopted a more measured tone when reflecting on proceedings. After composing himself, the Arsenal midfielder informed club media: "We played with dominance today, with confidence and just the connection that we had on the pitch.
"I think it was a special performance from us and something that we can continue to build on and something to work towards our goals. We know what these types of games are.
"We know the energy that the fans are bringing and how we need to be emotionally ready for the games as well. I think we've done so well with that and we took advantage of that for sure.
"These games are all about momentum and being in the moment. I'm just thankful to God for the opportunities that we took today. We worked so hard, we gave everything and when we perform like this it motivates us."
